Thompson Square Provide Soundtrack for Most Dramatic Moment in the NBA Playoffs
The NBA chose Thompson Square's new song "You Shoulda Been There" to highlight possibly the most dramatic moment all season. In an Instagram clip with nearly three million views, the song serves as the soundtrack to the Toronto Raptor's buzzer beating Game 7 playoff win over the Philadelphia 76ers.
In the minute-long clip, the announcers set the tone. "4.2 to go here in game 7," the clip begins. As the action on the court begins, the vocals from "You Shoulda Been There" ramp up. Raptors star Kawhi Leonard runs to the far end of the court and heaves up a shot. As it bounces on the rim, the song ramps up, intercut with dramatic crowd reactions.
Then, the ball drops through the hoop, sending the Raptors to the next round of the playoffs as the chorus of the song kicks in. Thompson Square released the new song on April 24th. Interestingly enough, it's not included on the duo's new album Masterpiece, which came out only a few weeks later.
It's rare to see a country artist paired with highlights from the NBA, which has traditionally stayed with pop, hip hop and occasionally rock music for entertainment purposes. But "You Shoulda Been There" is certainly the poppiest music to come from Thompson Square to date and fits right in with some of the Adult Contemporary tunes the NBA has used in the past (like music from Matchbox Twenty's Rob Thomas).
Reaction to the song in the clip was mixed. One user commented, "Country music as a background for basketball? Nah son this ain't it." But others responded with comments like, "I like it for this" and "music is diverse." Plenty of others commented that it didn't sound like country music at all, proving just how much the genre is battling old stereotypes of itself.
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